Panels like this one are known as arpillera and are traditionally made in Chile and Peru. Arpilleratranslates literally to burlap, they are three-dimensional designs appliquéd and embroidered onto a burlap backing. Most arpillera made today resemble this one, often featuring vivid colours and idyllic scenes with children playing in the shadows of the Andes. These modern arpilleraare made for the tourist trade, but the style began as a political protest.

A military coup overthrew the Chilean government in 1973, and the junta quickly declared martial law. Military rule was oppressive, and the government committed grave human rights abuses. Many people, particularly men suspected of political dissent, were kidnapped and “disappeared,” never to return to their families. An organization called Vicaría de la Solidaridad was formed, which began holding workshops to give the families of the disappeared a way to support themselves and work through their emotional trauma. The arpillera style emerged from these workshops, and women began creating anonymous, subversive images with found scraps of cloth. The government did not initially censor these artists because women’s crafts production was seen as inconsequential. The arpillerawere exported internationally, providing income for the women’s families and spreading awareness of the government’s repression.

Photo: Manitoba Crafts Museum and Library 1291.00A selection of contemporary pieces with vividly coloured rural scenes at market. Photo: Image courtesy the Consejo Nacional de la Cultura y las Artes Gobierno de Chile, September 2012Police round up civilians in this example created as a protest against the Chilean government Families of the “Detained and Disappeared People” protested before the Supreme Court, demanding to know where their loved ones were.Photo: Image courtesy Margaret Snook, 2013